NOAA 96-R073
Contact: Catherine Anderson, NOAA FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Janet Tennyson, U.S. FWS 10/29/96
A bill signed by President Clinton on Saturday will enact measures
to combat the growing nationwide problem of invasions by non-native
aquatic species and imported waterborne viruses, the Commerce Department's
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the Interior
Department's U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced.
The National Invasive Species Act calls for a more widespread
effort in looking for ways to prevent and control the increasing number of
invasions by non-native species and actively promotes more national
research. These amendments to the original Nonindigenous Aquatic Nuisance
Species Prevention and Control Act of 1990 will authorize $29 million
annually for nonindigenous species efforts, including $2 million for
nationwide ecological and ballast discharge surveys. On a regional level,
the bill authorizes $750,000 for research in the highly infested San
Francisco Bay and Estuary, and $500,000 for Pacific Coast research..
Invasive aquatic species, including fish, plants, shellfish, plankton
or other marine organisms, enter into a body of water or coastal ecosystem
outside of their native range. Often carried in the water that ships use
to maintain their stability, these nuisance species have already created
extensive economic and ecological damage in U.S. waters. Under the act, a
mandated 18-month ballast water management demonstration program will be
overseen by the departments of Commerce and Interior..
"The release of ballast water is now acknowledged to be the most
common way non-native species are unintentionally introduced into coastal
U.S. waters," said Al Beeton, acting NOAA chief scientist and former
director of NOAA's Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory. Zebra
mussels, which have caused millions of dollars of damage to physical
property and fisheries in the Great Lakes region, were introduced after
foreign ships released ballast water containing the tiny mollusks into the
lakes..
Created by the 1990 act, in partial response to the Great Lakes zebra
mussel infestation, an intergovernmental Aquatic Nuisance Species (ANS)
Task Force oversees and develops programs to prevent, research, monitor,
control and educate citizens about aquatic nuisance species. The task
force is co-chaired by NOAA and the Fish and Wildlife Service and includes
representatives from the U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. EPA, and departments of
Army, Agriculture and State. The revised act appoints a new
representative from the San Francisco Estuary Project and has seven
ex-officio members representing non-federal governmental groups..
"Funding Pacific coast research and research in the San Francisco Bay
is a positive step toward responding to increasing ANS invasions in marine
and coastal areas," said Sally Yozell, Commerce deputy assistant secretary
for oceans and atmosphere and NOAA's co-chair of the interagency ANS task
force. "The problem has now become a national one, with commerci al
fisheries on both coasts threatened by non-native species and imported
viruses.".
"The new ballast water program and additional funding for research
will help the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and other partners combat
widespread introductions of non-native species, which cause major economic
losses and wreak havoc on the biological balance of ecosystems," said Gary
Edwards, Assistant Service Director-Fisheries and co-chair of the
interagency ANS task force..
A national Forum on Coastal and Marine ANS, organized by NOAA to
examine the growing threat of marine invasions, will take place on Nov.
13, 1996, as part of the fall ANS task force meeting at the San Francisco
Bay National Wildlife Refuge. San Francisco was deemed the "most invaded
aquatic ecosystem in North America," based on a survey funded by the U.S.
FWS that found a dramatic introduction rate of one new non-native species
every three months in recent years.
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More information on Nonindigenous Aquatic Species, the 1990 act, National
Task Force or related research across the nation can be found on the World
Wide Web at:http://nas.er.usgs.gov To see the National Invasive Species
Act in its entirety, please cite Public Law 104-332.
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